Film tastes are as varied as the world’s consumers, with new centers of cinematic excellence sprouting in dozens of countries around the world. The global intellectual property system helps keep the reels turning, supporting the creation and delivery of films to eager audiences. That’s why the theme of World IP Day 2014, held on April 26, is “Movies – A Global Passion.”

“Movies have always attracted global audiences,” said WIPO Director General Francis Gurry in a message marking World IP Day. “From the very first silent movies they were watched across the whole world with fascination, and with passion. More recently, we have witnessed the growth not only of global audiences, but also of global production.”

“Where Hollywood was once the dominant player worldwide, now we see film industries flourishing across the world, be it Bollywood in India, Nollywood in Nigeria, or in Scandinavia, North Africa, China or other parts of Asia. So movies really are a global passion.”

To mark World IP Day 2014, WIPO is helping facilitate events in dozens of countries around the world. Via the IP Day Facebook page, film lovers around the world can learn about the history of film, the latest trends and how intellectual property helps promote creativity and innovation. In Geneva, WIPO is screening the Swiss premiere of the Nigerian/British co-production of author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s “Half of a Yellow Sun,” a story of Nigeria’s civil war with an international cast featuring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Thandie Newton and others.

“On World IP Day this year, I invite movie lovers everywhere, when next you watch a movie, to think for a moment about all the creators and innovators who have had a part in making that movie,” said Mr. Gurry. “And I would urge you also to think about the digital challenge which the Internet presents for film. I believe it is the responsibility not just of policy-makers but of each of us to consider this challenge, and to ask ourselves: How can we take advantage of this extraordinary opportunity to democratize culture and to make creative works available at the click of a mouse, while, at the same time, ensuring that the creators can keep on creating, earning their living, and making the films that so enrich our lives?”

World IP Day messages from Motion Picture Association of America Chairman Sen. Chris Dodd, Spanish screen actor Pilar Bardem (who is also the mother of Javier Bardem), Indian film producer Bobby Bedi and others will be released on April 26 here: http://www.wipo.int/ip-outreach/en/ipday/

Background for Editors

About World IP Day: WIPO’s member states initiated World IP Day in 2000 to raise public awareness about the role of IP in daily life, and to celebrate the contribution made by innovators and creators to the development of societies across the globe. World IP Day is celebrated annually on April 26, the date on which the Convention establishing WIPO entered into force in 1970.